The Medicine Bag

PART 1: Which statement expresses the main theme of the short story?

• One’s culture and the traditions associated with it are something to be proud of, not ashamed.

• Younger generations tend to not have the same respect for traditions that the older generation do.

• People can often be cruel or unkind towards people and practices that they don't understand.

• Physical objects can help people feel connected to their loved ones, even once they are gone.

PART B: Which detail from the text best supports the answer to Part A?

• “Our friends would have laughed at the picture, because Grandpa wasn't tall and stately like TV Indians.” (Paragraph 3)

• “To Grandpa and the Sioux, he once told me, a thing would be done when it was the right time to do it and that's the way it was. / ‘Also,’ Grandpa went on, looking at me, ‘I have come because it is soon time for Martin to have the medicine bag.’” (Paragraphs 39-40)

• “‘I gave him the bag, for I believed it would protect him in battle, but he did not take it with him. He was afraid that he would lose it. He died in a faraway place.’” (Paragraph 72)

• “‘Thank you, Grandpa,’ I said softly, and left with the bag in my hands. / That night Mom and Dad took Grandpa to the hospital. Two weeks later I stood alone on the lonely prairie of the reservation and put the sacred sage in my medicine bag.” (Paragraphs 82-83)

PART A: How does hearing his grandpa's story about the medicine bag affect Martin?

• It causes him to believe his grandpa about the medicine bag’s protective powers.

• It makes him fearful of what might happen if he refuses to wear the medicine bag.

• It helps him understand the significance of the medicine bag and be more accepting of wearing it

• It causes him to be skeptical about whether or not the medicine bag can truly protect him.

PART B: Which quote from the text best supports the answer to Part A?

• “‘He was afraid that he would lose it. He died in a faraway place.’” (Paragraph 72)

• . “Again Grandpa was still and I felt his grief around me.” (Paragraph 73)

• . “I closed my eyes and waited for him to slip it over my head.” (Paragraph 78)

• “‘It would not be right to wear it in this time and place, where no one will understand.’” (Paragraph 79)

PART A: In the passage, how do Martin and Cheryl's points of view towards their grandpa compare?

• Martin and Cheryl are both embarrassed by how their grandpa presents himself.

• Martin and Cheryl are both proud of their grandpa and his culture

• Martin is proud of his grandpa, while Cheryl is embarrassed by how he dresses.

• Martin is proud of his grandpa, while Cheryl is embarrassed by how he dresses.

PART B: Which section from the text best supports the answer to Part A?

• . “My kid sister Cheryl and I always bragged about our Sioux grandpa, Joe Iron Shell.” (Paragraph 1)

• “Not that we were ashamed of him, but because we knew that the glamorous tales we told didn't go with the real thing.” (Paragraph 3)

• “As we supported him up the steps, the door banged open and Cheryl came bursting out of the house. She was all smiles and was so obviously glad to see Grandpa that I was ashamed of how I felt.” (Paragraph 17)

• “But it had been brushed and the feather in the beaded headband was proudly erect, its tip a brighter white. His hair lay in silver strands over the red shirt collar.” (Paragraph 49)